Deck the Halls
by Oceanwind
Summary: Everything is more lively around the holiday season. The lights are brighter, the smells stronger, the memories dearer. Maka loves it all... especially since Kid promised he would be there. Estranged by a long forgotten fight, the two try to work it out. Or maybe Kid just needs to show her that the holidays are the best time to take a step in a different direction. Holiday KiMa OS


**Disclaimer: **I do not own Soul Eater…. Or Christmas…. Or money to pay for a law suit.

Mild warning for the rating. T for Teen, mentions of alcoholic consumption but don't worry everyone's over the legal age ;). Also rated for the mild language.

**Deck the Halls**

Maka bit back laughter as she raced to the door. She was positive that she had heard the gentle knock from in the kitchen, and had dropped the cookie dough unceremoniously on the counter to flee to its call. It had been years since the 'gang' had been together but with eager phone calls and planning she had gotten everyone to agree to come for the night and the next few days (possible weeks for some of them). Black Star and Tsubaki had flown in from Japan, Ox, Kim, Jackie, and Harvard had all come in from California. Liz and Patti had driven from New York… which left Kid. Maka didn't even check the pep hole to see who it was and eagerly flung the door back to reveal her longtime friend.

"What is that god awful thing?" Kid asked as she moved aside to let him in.

She laughed, ignoring his question and his pointed gaze to the wreath that hung on the wall behind her while launching herself into his arms. He hugged her back tightly, spinning her in a circle in his excitement. The cold air wafted from the outside around them and even brought a few snow flurries to dance along with them. The two laughed, out of relief and nervousness as their embrace ticked by in length. Neither wanted to let the other go and both seemed to be squeezing each other harder in reassurance that the other one was actually there. How long had it been? A year and a half? Two years?

For a moment the world froze and something oddly familiar sparked up between the two. It was something sweet, and very much so forbidden.

Soul coughed from behind them. He maneuvered to close the door and usher them into the foyer towards the closet. Kid half carried half dragged Maka further in, as they were still tightly embraced, grinning ear to ear as he spun her around the small space. Maka laughed.

"It's a wreath," the white-haired man answered Kid's earlier question with a sigh. "Don't tell me you can't—"

"It's horrible. Those bows on it aren't symmetrical at all and the wreath itself isn't even a perfect circle," Kid said curtly.

"Soul, don't tell me you've been eavesdropping again," Maka scolded, ignoring Kid's typical response.

"What is he going to do when he sees the tree?" Soul half growled ignoring Maka's disapproval to sort of glare at the man holding her, but his signature smirk was in place showing his happiness to see his friend as well.

Unconsciously Kid let his hands drop down to Maka's waist, and her hands had unconsciously landed on his chest. For a second they looked like lovers, greeting each other by the door, before Black Star poked his head out from the nearest door to frown at Kid. A fit of laughter could be heard through the crack, along with soft music and cheerful conversations. The soft glow from what could only be the kitchen brought the smell of peppermint and cookies to the entry way, and it seemed to wake the pair of old friends out of the trance they had placed on each other. They sprung apart at the sight of their blue haired friend.

"I thought I heard you. Can't you make an entrance that a real god should make? Like me! I had a flame thrower and melted the snow outside to—"

"Speaking of eavesdroppers," Maka muttered lowly interrupting Black Star's rant before continuing on as if the offender wasn't there she added, "I'll take your coat Lord Death."

Kid gave her a questioning glance as he handed her his coat. She had only used his proper title once or twice over the years, but given the circumstances, she wasn't sure if using his given name was appropriate.

"Don't interrupt your god Maka," Black Star teased, not letting her dwindle on her thoughts.

The meister seemed to neither care nor notice that he was interrupting something what Soul had tried to shelter for a few moments longer. Maka was naturally fine with her partner seeing the private greeting, but she felt a foreign feeling of embarrassment race through her at Black Star's teasing gaze.

"I think we need some more of your famous 'blue' drinks," Soul said sensing that Maka wanted a few more stolen moments with the estranged God of Death.

He shot his meister a shy look before he winked and disappeared into the kitchen with Black Star. Guiding his friend with an arm slung around his shoulder and talking loudly about different sport teams the pair quickly disappeared as the door swung open again letting in the warmth from the other room for a brief second, ushering the two friends away from the couple before it closed. The shut door left the hallway dark in comparison. The dinky light overhead blinked out leaving the room dark and the soft glow of Christmas lights from outside gave the room a romantic look. The merriment sounded so very far away, and despite their ecstatic greeting a chill swept over the room as they glanced at one another.

"I wrote to you. I called—"

"I know," Maka cut in curtly.

She sucked in a deep breath to steady herself as she caught his gaze. _I have to do this, I need this_. W_e can't keep acting like we were never friends. It was a stupid fight_, she told herself. The little chant did nothing to calm her nerves.

"Look, this isn't about us… I just want things to go back to normal. I think it is rather silly that we have danced around social gatherings just to avoid each other. We can be friends again, right?" she asked with a few deep and nervous breaths.

Kid's face screwed up in what looked to be like pain. The years had been good to him; his boyish look disappeared now that he was a full-blown reaper. He was taller than he had been in their childhood, and had a filled out healthy look to him. His pale features glowed blue, green and red from the outside lights, making his golden eyes flash lively. The lines of his hair connected now, and it had grown in length but he wore it so that it wasn't unattractive. His red festive turtle neck sweater seemed to pop in the darkness, drawing attention to his lean muscles. Maka couldn't help but drink in his chiseled features.

"What if I can't be friends?" he asked quietly after a moment.

He licked his lips nervously as he took a step closer to her. Her body stepped forward against her will responding to his actions, despite his words bringing a chill to her heart. She sucked in a harsh breath clearing her head as she took a step back. The room was only so big though, and Maka found that she had cornered herself against the entry way's table. The wreath behind her snagged the back of her head and instantly tangled with her hair.

"Kid," she warned, trying to pull the offending decoration off while keeping an eye on the predatory steps her friend took towards her.

She bit her lip hoping he wouldn't notice that she had slipped by not using the honorary term of Lord Death, and bowed her head slightly to avert her gaze from him. '_What the hell is he doing? What is he saying, why can't he be friends? Is that a title we can't have anymore because of my absence?_' she thought. She felt traitorous tears spring to her eyes. She was thankful that she had already lowered her head and was hiding the stubborn liquid that watered them. She thought that time would cure them that they could get along once they had all adjusted to their new lives. What had they even fought about? It seemed so silly now… all she remembered from that fight was his eyes… they had been so full of hate…

"Maka," he pleaded, stopping in front of her.

She didn't want to look in his eyes; she didn't want to see that resent towards her there again. She knew it was silly, judging by his greeting, he might even be teasing her just to ease the tension but she couldn't handle it. She couldn't handle one more Christmas of having to ask his Death Scythes' how he was, or if he was handling his new position well. She couldn't handle making another excuse to not answer the mirror when it rang with a mission, or taking pains to never cross a certain city headquarters. The only one that was truthful with her about how Kid was doing was Soul, always telling her that Kid constantly asked after her and how he looked and what not. Her weapon had tried to push her several times to talk to him before this, and she had finally cracked. Time made her forget why they had even fought in the first place. So why should she continue holding on to her pride? Her nervousness that she had been feeling all day seemed to double in the pit of her stomach. The loss of a friend because of such a trivial reason had her choking back tears. She needed an excuse to dash into the other room. She couldn't stand this and she didn't want him to see her crying. She needed to get away… Now was a time for cheer and love. For forgiveness… why couldn't they forgive each other?

"Can't we just enjoy this time with our friends without—"

His lips deftly caught hers in a chase kiss. They froze, neither moving as the jolt of lust shot down their spines. Like a car crash everything seemed to move in slow motion and then suddenly speed up again as both blinked as if surprised by Kid's actions. It didn't stop them though; Kid's hand softly tangled into Maka's hair and pulled her closer to his body. A soft sigh escaped him as her body seemed to meld perfectly into his. Her hands clutched the top of his jeans, flexing nervously as she timidly kissed him back. A tear rolled down her cheek against her will that Kid smoothed away with his thumb. She moaned, and left herself blush brightly as Kid pulled away to smirk at her. Whatever she had been expecting, a kiss had not been on the list. The last time they had seen each other hadn't exactly been pleasant and they had never moved past their friendship into something else. The tension had always been there, but nothing uncomfortable. Her mind whirled a million miles a minute as his minty breath ghosted over her nose and he leaned forward so that his cheek touched her cheek.

"Mistletoe," he whispered, his breath tickled her ear and shot a shiver down her spine as he turned her so that she could see that he was pointing at the wreath still semi caught in her hair.

"Holiday tradition," she squeaked. _I can't believe I moaned from a stupid kiss! He didn't even slip any tongue_, she scolded, torturing herself with dangerous thoughts.

A few of the offending berries had gotten caught in her hair. As the nervous girl laughed and pulled away she tried to brush them off, but Kid's hands stopped her. He pulled her close again. Her heart thumped loudly in her rib cage as he slowly pulled the plant out of her hair.

"You know mistletoe is actually a weed," she said reciting a random fact she remembered reading as his hands brushed across her head. She felt dizzy, her lips tingled, and she wondered just exactly what was she supposed to do with her hands?

"Yes I know," Kid chuckled. He took a step back and let out a deep breath.

"Can we talk later? I know we have a lot to sort through…" he trailed off and gave her a pleading look. How he accomplished looking like a lost puppy yet the still very attractive Lord of Death, she'd never know. She found her head nodding in agreement before breathing out a quiet yes.

"Good," he smiled brightly and caught her in a hug.

"Dammit Kid, could you take any longer? Everyone's asking for you," Soul growled poking his head out of the kitchen. Patti's loud shriek could be heard behind him, "KID'S HERE?!"

In a blur the small hall way burst with life as Liz and Patti whisked in and greeted their longtime partner. With Kid being the new Lord of Death he had stationed his closest partners to the largest cities throughout the world when a few of the old Death Scythe's stepped down for retirement. The Thompson sisters had requested New York, while Kim and Ox had moved to L.A. with their partners. The rest of their grade had been dispersed evenly throughout the world to where they were most suited, like Black Star and Tsubaki being stationed in Japan. Originally Maka had been stationed in Death City with Soul and Kid to help him transition into his role, but after their fight Maka had requested for Atlanta, which was why she, Blair and Soul now lived just outside the city near Stone Mountain. It was a beautiful house, enough for them to accommodate 20 people easily with the funds they made from serving the Lord of Death. Maka wasn't home enough to put the house into full use, and often gave it up while she was away so Kid could use it for board meetings or training grounds.

The next thing she knew, she was sitting on the couch beside the Christmas tree, listening to her friends laugh and exchange stories. Her fingers unconsciously came up and brushed her lips as Kid's laughter added to the bunch. _He kissed me._

Liz was busy telling Tsubaki about all the wonderful shopping in New York, while Patti and Black Star were having what looked to be like a mini wrestling match of sorts. Ox and Kim were busy trying to jump into others conversations… well Kim was busy trying to jump into other conversations, as she seemed slightly embarrassed by Ox's affection still. Jacqueline was laughing with Soul and Blair as they sipped some of Black Star's famous blue drinks which left Harvard mopping on the couch beside her and watching his friends with a soft smile.

"You know it's a shame that Kilik couldn't come. Angela too," he mumbled.

"Angela is busy with school at Death City. Kilik is with his family and visiting Pot of Fire and Pot of Thunder. He rarely gets to see them."

"We're family too, he rarely gets to see us," Harvard mumbled quietly, almost too lowly for her too hear.

She smiled softly as he yawned with some exaggeration and made his way over to Jacqueline with a bored expression. He always acted like he was better than the rest of them, but it was nice to see that even his ice heart would melt around this time of year. Soul came over and handed her a drink.

"You need to relax Maka. Judging by that kiss anything he says to you will just border on creepy stalker material or desperate," he teased.

"So you were watching as well as eavesdropping," Maka growled while taking a swift sip of the warm cup he had handed her. She sputtered slightly and rolled her eyes to her longtime partner. "Spiked eggnog, really?"

"Tis the season," he laughed.

She would have punched him playfully in the arm, but instead gave him a soft smile as he raced off to join Liz in a dance off. The warm cup and burn of liquor helped ease her and soon she was joining in the merriment with her friends. The fleeting thoughts of 'He kissed me' only caught her once or twice when she had a feeling that Kid was looking at her, so for the most part she was relaxed.

Suddenly it was close to dawn, and half of them were sprawled out of the couches, listening to softer Christmas music and watching the dying fire. Maka found herself snuggled up next to Kid and she wondered if that had happened with some careful planning of her friends or if they had been naturally drawn to one another. A glance at the clock told her it was nearly 5 in the morning as she stifled a yawn. Surveying the room she noticed that nearly everyone had collapsed in a giant pile on the large couch near the fire, with her and Kid barely on the outskirts of it. Kid had his arms flung over the back of the couch so that one rested near her and the other by what looked suspiciously like Blair's hat or maybe Tsubaki's ponytail. It was really too hard to tell who was who in that jumble. There came a few whispers here and there, reminding Maka of their much younger days as teenagers and sleepovers, but for the most part everyone had nodded off to sleep.

She started to debate if she should fake sleep as well, but caught Kid's burning gaze and slight smirk.

"Avoiding me now?" he teased a small smile gracing his lips in a tired twitch. Lines of worry that might have been there earlier had long ago been erased in the presences of his friends.

"How could I possibly be doing that?" she feigned innocence.

Although she had spent most of the night being away from the young Death Lord, she had somehow wound up at his side now and hadn't tried to bury herself in that pile of friends that resided next to them. Which might be a small lie if she told you she hadn't thought of actually doing it for a brief second.

"Well I guess I should have expected that. It's kind of hard to not do anything rash when you're around…"

"The Lord of Death has impulses?" she teased. She couldn't help herself. Their long-awaited talk from their fight years ago was coming. It didn't help that the buzz from their earlier kiss still burned in her (or was that the eggnog?), and she wasn't quite sure how to act. What exactly was she supposed to do with her hands again?

"Many involving you," he muttered with a defeated sigh. She kept her silence, feeling something odd envelop her and fill her chest with warmth at his words.

"Soul mentioned several times how uncool I was being so I'll try not to scare you off," he mumbled lowly.

"He did say that you were boarding on desperate," she chuckled. Kid rolled his eyes.

"Like you were any better? I heard from nearly every Death Scythe that you were inquiring after my health or if I was handling the stress well," he poked her side.

Maka puffed out her cheeks in a fake pout, he had caught her. But never in her wildest dreams would she have imagined that this conversation between them would be so easy or natural, like it had only been yesterday that they had last spoken not two years.

"It was hard not seeing you," she relented with red tinted cheeks. "But that's a creepy fact you have on me. I don't have any on you," she protested.

"1 year 11 months and 16 days," he breathed out after a considerable length of silence. "That was the last time I saw you. I cracked one day and checked a mirror while you were out on a mission…"

She titled her head in confusion.

"Lord Death, I don't get what point you are trying to mak—"

Kid sighed and placed a finger firmly over her lips.

"You do get it. I was a jack ass. I picked a fight with you that day because I couldn't handle not being with you and I didn't know how to express it. I thought that we could never be together because of what I am and what you are and because of that I took it out on you. I was rash and rude to you that day and you had no clue as to why I was behaving like that. I'm sorry," he whispered in a rushed breath.

He turned so that they were fully facing each other. His voice so low she was sure that only she could hear it and that if anyone was awake they would merely hear the crackling of the fire. His hands shot out and tangled with hers. She felt that foreign feeling constrict in her chest and despite his heartfelt apology and the seriousness of the moment a smile escaped her. Her heart thundered loudly in her chest to the point where she was sure that everyone could hear it easily.

"You're trying to profess your love?" she guessed after a minute, trying to lighten the mood by adopting a teasing tone.

"Something like that," Kid agreed after a moment with a shrug. His smile deepening as he leaned in closer. "I know you know I love you," he told her with a blush, "but I'd rather patch things up and keep you as a friend than ever be that selfish again. I feel like I went insane without you."

"Then don't pick stupid fights because I ordered the wrong sushi," she growled just as he caught her lips for a second time that night.

"Don't ignore me for 2 years," he snapped back in-between kisses.

"Go get a room," Soul growled from somewhere within the pile. "No one wants to hear your goey Christmas love confessions under the mistletoe. So uncool," he added when neither moved.

Maka smiled and grabbed Kid's hand.

"I know where we can find some mistletoe," she said just loudly enough for her eavesdropping partner to hear, eliciting a groan from a few within the pile.

Kid chuckled as they dashed into the kitchen officially away from prying eyes and open ears.

* * *

**A/N: **A little one shot. No one shoot me for not updating my other works. I simply could NOT get this out of my head. I promise updates for Odds and Ends will be coming soon as well as stuff for other fandoms (if you guys even follow my work). If you don't follow my work, it's okay. I still love you and I'm super excited you choose to read my fic. I hope ya'll enjoyed it!


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